hartman



H. T. HARTMAN.

Car-Track Ciearer.

Patented Feb. 16, 1858.

M. PETERS. more umosmum:

H. T. I-IARTMAN, OF LEXINGTON, VIRGINIA.

RAILROAD SN OW-PLOW.

Specification of Letters Patent No.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY T. HARTMAN, of Lexington, in the county of Rockbridge and State of Virginia, have invented an Improvement in Snow-Excavators, and that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the principle or character which distinguishes it from all other things before known and of the usual manner of making, modifying, and using the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, of which Figure 1 represents a perspective view of the car and Fig. 2 an end View of the same.

My invention consists in an improvement in snow excavators for clearing the track of the locomotive hereinafter described.

Various devices have been essayed for this purpose but one of the great difiiculties experienced is, that the clearer gathers more snow than is necessary for the safe passage of the train and consequently has to overcome a greater resistance, and where the snow is very deep, or where it has consolidated by thawing and freezing it has been found difficult to penetrate, and again, long inclines are employed the whole length of the car with deflectors at the rear end for discharging the snow, but these are objectionable on account of the great friction caused by forcing the snow up the inclines, and where the snow is very deep these deflectors do not discharge. Vith my arrangement I obviate these difficulties by removing only that amount of snow which causes the obstruction, which is done by employing a clearer of the shape and construction shown in Figs. 1 and 2 namely of a double triangular shape with the points of the angles in 19 ,361, dated February 16, 1858.

a line with and just over the T rail. This clearer A is made so as to clear the track, leaving the snow between the rails in the form shown in Fig. 2, raised in the center and inclining on either side, by thus doing I remove the obstructing snow while the rest is left remaining. As the snow is gathered at the mouth of this clearer A it is forced up the short incline into the car. This car is divided by a partition 03 which separates the car into two compartments C, C. The floor of this car is made to conform to the two sides D D of the clearers, viz., inclining downward on either side. This inclined floor extends the whole length of the car. Doors or gates E, E, E, E, (four or more) are employed on either side of the car reaching down to the bottom of the inclined floor where they may be secured by bolts F F or anything suitable, and this is to be operated by the engineer. When the car compartments C C are filled with snow.

the doors are raised and the snow falls off some distance from the track. The doors are then secured ready for another excavation. I may say here should the snow be very deep and in drifts when an excavation is made and the car is filled it is backed out and emptied and returned for another load.

l/Vhat I claim is The combination of the inclined clearer A with the double inclined bottom of the car in the manner and for the purposes herein set forth.

H. T. HARTMAN.

l/Vitnesses:

R. T. CAMPBELL, JAMES N. CAMPBELL. 

